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The
Kambojas were a Kshatriya or warrior clan of
Iron AgeIndia, frequently
mentioned in (post-Vedic) Sanskrit
and Pali literature (though not in the
Rigveda), making their first appearance in the Mahabharata and contemporary Vedanga literature (roughly from the 7th century
BCE). The Ancient Kamboja Kingdoms were located beyond
Gandhara in extreme north-west of India in
Central Asia (see Kamboja Location). The Kambojas seem to
have occupied a transition region between the Aryan and the Scythian
world--- forming probably the northern-most section of the Aryans
or the southern-most section of the Scythians thus, sharing the characteristics of the
Aryans as well as the Scythians. In the epicMahabharata, the Kurus and
the Kambojas appear intimately connected and allied tribes. The
epic story further reveals that a full division
(Akshouhini) army of wrathful warriors comprising the
Kambojas, Sakas,
Yavanas and other tribes from Central Asia
including the Daradas, Tusharas and the Khasas had
participated in the Kurukshetra war under the
supreme leadership of Sudakshin
Kamboj . The Kambojas looms large in ancient Sanskrit and Pali texts, and in
addition, they also find adequate references in several ancient and
medieval era inscriptions, coins and seals. Below are listed some
pre-Christian and post-Christian inscriptions which contain some
information on Kamboja or the Kambojas.

Achaemenid Inscriptions

Cambyses (Kambujiya)
appears as the name of an earlier member of the Achaemenid line (7th C BCE). He was probably
grandson of Cyrus the Great , the
son and the successor of Teispes of Anshan, who himself was the successor of Achaemenes the founder of the Achaemenid Dynasty. This Cambyses
(Kambujiya) must not be confounded with later Cambyses I (Kambujiya-I), the
son of Cyrus I (Kurush I), who was in fact the second of the name
in line of Persian kings or Cambyses II
(Kambujiya II) who was the son and successor of
Cyrus II (Kurush II) or Cyrus the
Great.

Cambyses appears in Babylonian contract-tablets found at Warka with the
title Cambyses (Kambuzi), king of Babylon .

Brick
Inscription attributed to Cyrus was found at Senkereh in
lower Chaldea in which Cyrus says himself "the son of
Cambyses (Kambuzi) the powerful king" who repaired the temples
at Babylon. He
was thus, the Cyrus who reigned at Babylon.

Luftus wrote that he found at Warka "bricks inscribed in a
slightly relieved cuneiform characters of Cambyses 'the
brother of Cyrus, a person of whom we posses no historical
knowledge".

The above probably are the earliest references to the Persian form
of the name Kambujiya (Greek Cambyses) and the king referred to is
undoubtedly the first of the three Kambujiyas of the
Achaemenid line.

The Cyrus cylinder

Cylinder of Achaemenid king, Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II)

The Cyrus Cylinder also known as the
Cyrus the Great cylinder is a
document issued by the Persian
emperor Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II of
Persia) in the form of a clay cylinder inscribed in Akkadiancuneiform script.
The
cylinder was created following the Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BC,
when Cyrus, king of Anshan, overthrew the Babylonian king Nabonidus, ended the
Neo-Babylonian Empire and declared him to become the ruler of all
the world. Fragment A of the cylinder is about 23 cm
wide and 8 cm in diameter and is inscribed on all sides. It
contains lines 1-35 where line 21 contains reference to name
Ka-am-bu-zi-ia as the father of Cyrus the Great
and line 27 refers to Ka-am-bu-zi-ia as the son of
Cyrus the Great. Cyrus, king of Ansan, declared him to become the
ruler of all the world. Name Ka-am-bu-zi-ia of the
Akkadian script is the same as the Kambujiya mentioned in Old Persian Inscriptions.
Cyrus
Cylinder was discovered in 1879 and now in the British Museum is one of the most famous cuneiform texts.See Cyrus Cylinder: [761968].

Behistun inscriptions of Achaemenid king Darius I

The
Behistun inscriptions
of Achaemenid king Darius I, the Great refer to the royal
name Kambujiya in its various grammatical forms i.e.Kabûjiy-a = Cambyses;
Kabûjiy-ahyâ = Cambysis;
Kabûjiy-am = Cambysem;
Kabûjiy-â = Cambyse. In the old Persian,
mb was impossible articulation, hence the actual
name Kambûjiya, and its grammatical forms Kambûjiyam, Kambûjiyâ and
Kambûjiyahyâ appear in the inscriptions respectively as Kabûjiya,
Kabûjiyam, Kabûjiyâ and Kabûjiyahyâ . The Kambûjiya or perhaps
Kambaujiya appears as Kambyses or Cambyses in the ancient Greek
literature.

Kambûjiya
occurs in Egypt as Kambuza,
Kambythet (or rather Kambuzia) and Kambunza, in Elemite as
Kanbuziya, in Akkadian as Kambuziya, as
Kambuzia in Assyrian, as Kanpuziya in
Susiana and Aramaic as C-n-b-n-z-y
etc.. In Zend Avestan it occurs as Kavaus which in
the Arabic and modern Persian has given birth to the two distinct
forms Kabus and Kavus or Kaus. The Persian historians do not seem
to be aware that the name of Kabus, which was borne by the dilemite
sovereigns, is the same with the Kaus of Romance; yet the more
ancient form of Kaubus or Kavuj for the later name renders the
identification almost certain. The Georgians even to the present
day, name the Hero of the Romance as Kapus, still retaining the
labial which has merged in the Persian Kaus. Mr Burnouf has
examined in the most elaborate manner the etymology of Zend
Kavaus , and has endeavored to show the true signification to be
the intelligent king. It is indeed very possible
that the desire to obtain this meaning in the sacred language may
have induced the compilers of the Zend
Avesta, under the Sassanians to
disfigure the original form of the name, then only known in popular
traditions; but perhaps no one will at present pretend to compare
the relative antiquity of the forms of the Kavaus and Kabujiya any
more than it would be allowable to derive Kurush (Cyrus) from
Hycrava , and if we are to seek for the primitive derivation of the
name, we must follow the cuneiform rather than the Zend
orthography. Supposedly, Kabujiya then to signify literally “a
bard” from Kab: “to praise” or color and
uji: “a speaker”; and it is further conjectured
that from the king of that name was derived the geographical title
Kamboja which, retained to the present day
in Kamoj of Cafferistan, became also by a
regular orthographical procession Kabus, Kabur and Kabul . In
modern times, besides Kamoj in Kafiristan, the name is also retained in the
Kamboj/Kamboh (an
ethnic people) in Punjab.

Most scholars see a connection between the Iranian royal name
Kambujiya and the Old Indian ethnic and toponym Kamboja .

According to W. Eiler, the Iranian form of the name i.e Kambujiya
(Cambyses) is the original one .

Strabo’s Geography attests Cambysene (Latin form of Greek Kambysēnē) as Country and
Mountain region and makes it as one of the northern-most provinces
of Armenia, bordering
on the Caucasus
mountains through which a road connecting Albania and Iberia passed . Strabo also attests
a large river Cyrus (Kurosh) , which according to Mela rose from
Montes Coraxici (main chain of Caucasus) and flowed from
Iberia to Albania in nearly a south-east course. Cambyses
(Kambujiya), modern Yori, Jora, or Gori another river rising in the
Caucasus or according to Mela, in the Coraxici Montes flowed
through the province of Cambysene and fell into the Cyrus (Kurosh)
after uniting with the Alazonius (Alasan) a little distance away.
Province Cambysene got its name from river Cambyses. A close
reading of Strabo suggests that Cambysene stretched approximately
from the Cyrus river on the west to the Alazonius river on the east
.

Ptolemy and Ammianus
Marcellinus also mention two rivers called Cyrus (Kurush) and
Cambyses (Kambujiya) flowing through Media Atropatenein in
easterly direction and falling into the Caspian sea---river Cyrus falling between Araxes (Aras) and the
Amardus (Sefid Rud) and if the order of Ammianus Marcellinus be
correct, then river Cambyses (Kambujiya) would seem to have been
closer to the Amardus (Sefid-Rud) and falling into Caspian at Rasht
(in Gilan province). In the Epitome of Strabo a nation of
the Caspians is spoken of πɛρι τὀν Καμβύσην ποταμόν
(Kambysen---Kambujiya?) .

Stephen of Byzantium defines Kambysēnē as a Persikē khōra
(Persian country) and relates the name to Achaemenid king
Cambyses (i.e. Kambujiya) . The Greek form
of the name i.e Kambysēnē, must have been derived in the Hellenistic period from an indigenous name,
corresponding to ArmenianKʿambēčan, with the common ending
-ēnē. In Georgian it is
written Kambečovani, in ArabicQambīzān . In Sanskrit, it is
believed to have been transliterated as Kamboja. Though not attested prior to Strabo,
the region Cambysene and the rivers Cyrus and Cambyses are believed
to have born these name since remote antiquity.

The territorial name Cambysene (Gk. Kambysēnē) as well as the river
names Cyrus (Kurosh) and Cambyses (Kambujiya) occurring in Strabo's
Geography and Pliny's Histoires on north of Iran (1) in
Media and (2) in Armenia Major as also the ancient ethnics
inhabiting therein may be related to the ethno-geographical name
Kambuja/Kamboja and
Kuru of the Sanskrit
texts . According to Ernst Herzfeld
also, Cyrus and Cambyses, the names of two rivers, as well as the
Achaemenid names Kurosh and Kambujiya
were derived from Kuru and Kamboja tribal people
as referred to in the Indian texts . It is very probable that
before leaving the Caspian region for Iran/Afghanistan and
North-west India in the wake of 'volker wanderung' of the
ninth/eighth centuries BCE, these Caspians
people (Cambusena) may have been living as single tribe spread into
the valleys of Cyrus and Cambyses in Armenia. But after migrating
to Indian sub-continent, they probably split-up into two distinct
clans i.e. Kurus and Kambojas and first settled (1) in
Trans-Himalayan region as Uttarakurus
(Sinkiang) and Parama Kambojas (Badakshan/Pamirs) and (2)
later also moved to cis-Himalayan regions as Kurus (in South-Esat
Punjab/Kuruksetra) and Kambojas (in south-west Kashmir/and in Kabul
valley). In the Kurukshetra war,
the Kurus and Kambojas are seen as very closely allied
tribes. However, while referring to the classical
names Kambysene and Kambyses,
German scholar Friedrich Spiegel
speculates that the Iranian Kambojas had probably moved from the
Indus-land (Kamboja of the north-west of Indian
traditions) and took the name Kamboja with them and lent it to
the regions and rivers on north-west of Iran (Armenia and
Albania), just as the Indian while moving southwards have done it
with names Ganga and Kosala etc .

It is also said that Cambyses (Jora, Yori or Gori) was the
sacred river Champsis (=Cambyses) of the Scythians before they went to the north Caucasus
isthmus via Caspian and Nlanytsch .

The name
Cambyses also occurs in Egypt as Kambuza,
Kembatet (or rather Kambuzia) and Kambunza, in Elemite Kanbuziya,
in Akkadian as Kambuziya and Aram. as
Knbwzy etc. In Zend Avestan, the name takes the form of
Kavaus and in modern Persian as Kavus and Kaus. Kabus, which
was born by the Dilemite sovereigns is the same with the Kaus of
Romance; yet the more ancient form is Kaubus or "Kabuj" which
latter name renders the identification with Sanskrit Kamboja also
most certain. The Georgian, even to
the present day, name the hero of romance Kapus, still retaining
the labial which has merged in the Persian . In modern times, the
name appears as Kamoj in Kafiristan and Kamboj/Kamboh in East and West
Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar
Pradesh.

The reflection of royal name Kambûjiya (or Kambaujiya) probably is
found in the name of ancient king Kamboja referred to in the
Mahabharata i.e: Dhundhumarachcha Kambojo (=Kamboja)
Muchukundastato.alabhat . This Kamboja of Mahabharata is also
believed by some scholars to be the eponymous originator of tribal
name Kamboja, a name which looms large in ancient Sanskrit and Pali
texts .

Kambûjiya and Kurush (Cyrus) appear to have been popular names in
ancient Iran. At least, three Cyrus and three Kambûjiyas are
referred to in ancient sources. Kambujiya I
(Cambyses I) was an earlier member of Achaemenid line (7th C BCE).
He was probably the son and the successor of Teispes of Anshan, who
himself was the successor of Achaemenes the founder of the Dynasty.
This Cambyses (Kambujiya) must not be confounded with later
Cambyses or Kambujiya, the son of Cyrus I (Kurosh I), who was in
fact the second of the name in line of Persian kings (Herod.,
VII.II). Kambujiya II (Cambyses II) was son of
Cyrus I and had ruled Anshan from 600 -559 BCE. He was a Persian
king of good family whom king Astyages of Media, had married his
daughter Mandane. The issue of this union was Cyrus II, the Great
(Herod., I, 46, 107). Kambujiya III (Cambyses III)
was son and successor of Cyrus II the great and had ruled Persia
from 530 - 522 BCE. He is famous for his conquest of Egypt and the
havoc he had wrought upon that country.

Historian Arnold J.Toynbee makes interesting observations on
Kamboja and their geographical location and notes that Kamboja and Kuru occur as place
names (1) in Armenian in Transcaucasia
(South Caucasus or South-Central Eurasia) ,
(2) in Media Atrapatein , (3) close on north of Hindukush and (4) south of Hindukush in the Indian sub-continent .
Interestingly, at all these places, the Kuru (=Cyrus) and Kamboja
(=Cambyses) were found to be juxtaposed side by side. Arnold J.
Toynbee finds an echo of the usage of the Sanskrit term Bahlikas in
its counterpart of the Avestan term
'Pairikas' which he uses to cover the swarm of Euroasian and Central
Asian nomads including the Bahlikas (Bactrians), Malavas, Kambojas, Kurus, Madras, Madrakas etc.,
which in the 'volker wanderung' of the eighth and seventh
centuries BCE, poured out of the Euroasiansteppe into the Punjab and beyond. Toynbee
thus analyses that the Kambojas and Kurus from Caucasian
region west of Caspian sea, took part in the 'volker
wanderung' of the eighth and seventh centuries BCE and then
split into two wings.He further says that these
two peoples who stamped their national names on the local landscape
must have been closely connected and both played some part in
Achaemenian history that had been
auspicious as well as important .

James Hope Moulton however remarks: “The names Kuru and Kamboja
are of disputed etymology, but there is no
reason whatever to doubt their being Aryan.I do not think
there has been any suggestion more attractive than that made long
ago by Spiegel that they attach themselves to Sanskrit Kura (Kuru) and
Kamboja, originally Aryanheroes of the fable, whose names
were naturally revived in a royal house (in Persia)....Kamboja is a geographical name, and so is Kuru often: hence their appearance in Iranian similarly to-day as Kur and
Kamoj"..

King Asoka’s Inscriptions

Asoka's Rock Edict V alludes to various nations or peoples on the
western borders (Aparnata) of ancient India in addition to those
named specifically. It says: “Here in the king's domain among
the Greeks, the Kambojas, the Nabhakas, the Nabhapamkits, the
Bhojas, the Pitinikas, the Andhras and the Palidas, everywhere
people are following Beloved-of-the-Gods' instructions in
Dhamma." thus telling us that King Ashoka sent missionaries to
the Greeks, Kambojas and other people on the north-west borderlands
to convert them to Buddhism and recorded this fact in the Rock
Edict V .

The Kambojas also find prominent mention as a unit in Rock Edict
thirteen of king Asoka . Rock Edict XIII says that “it is conquest
by Dhamma that Beloved-of-the-Gods considers to be the best
conquest. And it (conquest by Dhamma) has been won here, on the
borders, even six hundred yojanas away, where the Greek king
Antiochos rules, beyond there where the four kings named Ptolemy,
Antigonos, Magas and Alexander rule, likewise in the south among
the Cholas, the Pandyas, and as far as Tamraparni and here in the
king's domain and among the Greeks, the Kambojas, the Nabhakas, the
Nabhapamkits, the Bhojas, the Pitinikas, the Andhras and the
Palidas, everywhere people are following Beloved-of-the-Gods'
instructions in Dhamma”. Rock Edict V says that Dhamma Mahamatras
were appointed by Asoka thirteen years after his coronation and
“They work among the Greeks, the Kambojas, the Gandharas, the
Rastrikas, the Pitinikas and other peoples on the western
borders”.

The
Rock Edicts XIII and V containing
references to the Kambojas have been found in (1)
Shabazgarhi in Peshawar in North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan (in Kharoshthis script), (2)
Mansehra in Hazara District
in North west Frontier Province of Pakistan (in Kharoshthis
script), (3) Kalsi in Dehradun District (in Brahmi script), (4)
Girnar in Kathiawar (Gujarat) (in Brahmi script) and (5)
Dhauli in
Orissa (in
Brahmi script).

Besides the Major Rock edicts as referred to above, several minor
edicts of Asoka have also been found in North West Frontier
Province of Pakistan and Afghanistan many of which are believed to
have been specifically addressed to the Kambojas. For example (1) the
Bilingual Inscription found in 1957 in the vicinity of Shar-i-Kuna
in Kandhahar is believed to have been directed at the Yavanas of
Arachosia and the Kamboja population of
Arachosia/Ghazni---the Greek
version being designed for the Yavanas and the Aramaic version
loaded with archaic Iranian words is said to be designed for the
Kambojas ; (2) the second Aramaic inscription of Asoka discovered
in 1964 from the old ruins of Kandhahar (Shar-i-Kuna) was similarly
directed at the Kambojas of Arachosia/Ghazni; (3) the two unusual
Aramaic inscriptions of Asoka found in Lamghan valley---one
inscribed on rock called Sultan Baba found in 1932 and the second
noticed in 1973 engraved on a cliff known as Sam Baba were both
also designed for the Kambojas of Paropamisadae; (4) the Aramaic
inscription found few years before 1932 in the neighborhood of
Pul-i-Darunta in the Lamghan area of East Afghanistan was also
specifically designed for the Kambojas of Paropamisadae; (5) The Sirkap Aramaic
inscription of Asoka found earlier in 1914-15 is also believed to
have been directed at the Aramaic knowing population living in
Taksashila on east side of the Indus . Scholars believe that
the Aramaic version of king Asoka’s edicts were specifically meant
for the Kambojas .

Kambojas
were essentially an Avestan speaking
Iranians. But the Aramaic was
the administrative language of the Achaemenids. The Persian conquests of 6th c BCE had spread the use of
Aramaic language and script as well as knowledge of Iranian book
keeping and architecture in Afghanistan and north-west India.Since
clans living on west of Panjkora and in the
Laghman and Kabul valleys and
spreading towards Qandhahar were Iranian Kambojas and hence they
knew the Aramaic writing system well. The Aspasioi (Asvayanas) were one among them. The
Aramaic versions of Asoka’s edicts found in Lamghan/Kabul valley
(Parppamisadae) and in Qandhahar with heavy dose of Iranian
vocabulary were meant for these Iranian Kambojas. But the Assakenoi Asvakas or Asvakayanas) section of
Kambojas living towards south-east of Panjkora as far as Indus and
on its east side, as well as the Gandharans of Pushkalavati and
Taksashila were more Indian than Iranian, hence the major edicts of
Asoka found at Shabazgarhi (in Peshawar District) and Mansehra (in
Hazara district) were meant for these Indianised Kambojas and the
Gandharas and were written in Prakrit
language and Kharoshthi script.It has to
be remembered that the Kambojas had both Indian as well as Iranian
affinities . As one would expect at that time, the
dividing line between Iran and India would have
been somewhere between the Kunar and the
Swat rivers, possibly on the Guraeus or
Panjkora river . Thus, the Kambojas living towards
south-east of Panjkora were more under the Indian cultural and
linguistic influence while those beyond its north-west were
Iranians in culture and language. Iranian language was spoken on
the north of Kunar where as the Pracrit on its south . Thus, the
Aspasioi of the classical writings located on north-west of
Panjkora were known by their Iranian name (from Iranian Aspa=
horse), while the Assakenoi of the classical writings located
on its south-east towards Swat and Indus are known by their Indian
name (from Sanskrit Asva = horse). River Swat was also
known anciently by its Indian name as Suvastu (good-dwelling
place) whereas the Kunar/Konar or Khonar was known as Khoaspes
(Eusapa or Su-Aspa or Hvaspa = means good horses) again
illustrating the Iranian influence towards Kunar and beyond.

Vatasvaka coins

The coins
bearing Vatasvaka legend in Brahmi characters similar to
those on the square copper coins of Pantaleons and Agathocles (c
193o BC) are also connected by identity of type with some of the
“single die” coins found in the neighborhood of Taxila and
Swat. The date of these coins is fixed at about 200 BCE.
Buhler has explained this name as denoting the Vata sub-divion
of the Asvakatribe
or as the Asvaka tribe of the Vata or fig-tree clan .
Other historians interpret the Vatasvaka legend as
denoting "Varta+Asvaka" i.e Asvakas engaged in Vata
(cowerie) or Varta (trade). Term Varta includes cattle culture,
trade and agriculture. Since Asvakas were especially renowned for
breeding and raising horses (Asvas) and as a cavalrymen, hence they
were in popular parlance also known as Varta-Asvka which in prakrit
was Vatasvaka . The name is connected with Asvakas of Swat valley.
In Kautiliya's Arthashastra, besides Shastropajivnah
(living by warfare or wielding weapons), the Kambojas are also
designated as Varta-Opajivinah (living by agriculture,
cattle culture, and trade) . Scholars have identified Asvakas with Kambojas
.

The Mathura Lion Capital also mentions the genealogy of several Indo-Scythian satraps of Mathura. It mentions
Sodasa (Sudasa), son of Rajuvula, who succeeded him and also made
Mathura his capital. According to S Konow's interpretations, Aiyasi
Kamuia was the chief queen
(Agra-Mahishi) of Mahakshatrapa (Great Strap) Rajuvula.
She was the daughter of Yuvaraja Kharaostes (Kharaosta) who himself
is atated in the Capial inscriptions as Kamuio (= Kamuia)-- a Kamboja
. This father and daughter relationship between Yuvaraja Kharoasta
and princess Aiyasi is convincing since such designations are
naturally inherited by the offsprings from the father and not from
the mother side. Yuvaraja Kharaosta of the Mathura Lion Capital is
the same person as the Kshatrapa Kharaosta whose coins have been
examined by Luders and Rapson. The coins of Kharaosta attest that
he was son of Arta , thus indisputably
establishing that Arta was also a Kamuia.

According to S. Konow, R. K. Mukerjee, J. L. Kamboj, Kirpal Singh
and other scholars, king Moga or Maues was younger brother of Arta. Thus if Yuvaraja
Kharaosta, his daughter Aiyasi and his father Arta were Kamuias, same must have been the case with king Maues
or Moga. Making use of science of linguistics, S. Konow and others scholars have
identified the term Kamuia and Kamuio of the Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions with
SanskritKamboja or
PaliKambojaka or
Kambojika or Iranian name Kambujiya, thus establishing that princess Ayasia
Kamuia and her father Yuvaraja Kharaosta Kamuio belonged to the
Kamboja/Kambujiya tribe
or country . Thus, Kharaosta and Moga, the so-called
Scythian rulers of Taksashila, in all probability, were from Kamboja extractions
. Scholars like Alfred A. Foucher, Gerard Huet, Giovanni
Pugliese Carratelli, Giovanni Garbini, Serge Thion etc style the
Kambojas to be a Royal Clan of the Sakas or Scythians. . This
also seems to be confirmed from Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions of
Mahaksatrapa Rajuvula and the Rock Edict XIII of King Aśoka .

The style
of the Mathura Lion Capital is strikingly Iranian and the epigraph is undoubtedly mixture of Scythian, Iranian and even Indian nomenclature . Even Sakastan (Sakhastan) referred to in the Lion
Capital is Iranian name. Names like Kharaostes, Nadia Diaka,
Aiyasi, Patika, Kshatrapa etc are Iranian and Bhikhu, Buddhila ets
are Prakritic names. Title "king of kings" used by king Moga on his
coins is also Iranian rather than Scythian . Machenes, the princess
who succeeded king Moga as ruler of Taksashila is said by some
scholars to be widow of king Maues. If this so, then as pointed out
by Rider, the name Machenes may be related to Iranian Mahi, meaning
"moon", and is comparable to Persian mahin, "(beautiful) like the
moon" . This may again point to Iranian affinities of king Maues
and his family.

Coins of Kharaostes

Kharahostes or Kharaostasa is stated to be an Indo-Scythian satrap
ruling in Chuksa in the northern Indian sub-continent around 10 BCE - 10 CE. The
Greek and Kharoshthi legends on his coins describe him as
son of Arta:

Kharahostei strapei Artauou (Greek
legend)

Kshatrapasa pra Kharaostasa Artasa putrasa
(Kharasshthi legend).

This Kshatrapa Kharaostasa of the coins has been identified with
yuvaraya (heir apparent) Kharaosta mentioned in the Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions where
he bears a surname Kamuio (Kamuia) after his name . He is stated to be father of
Aiyasi the chief queen (Agra-Maheshi) of Saka Mahaksharapa Rajuvula.
Scholars have identified terms Kamuia/Kamuio appearing as surnames
in the Mathura Capital Inscription with Sanskrit name Kamboja or
Pali name Kambojika .
Thus, we can easily see that princess Aiyasi, his father Kharaosta
and his uncle Arta were all Kamuias or Kambojas. Thus, the coins
with above legends belong to Kharaostasa (or Yuvaraja Kharaosta)
who was a Kamuia or Kamboja ruler of Chuksa—a territory comprising
districts of Peshawar, Hazara, Attock and Mianwal in northern
Pakistan .

Apracaraja Indravarman's Silver Reliquary

An
Inscribed Silver Buddhist Reliquary or Apracaraja
Indravarman's Silver Reliquary has been found, presumably
from Bajaur area of
ancient Kapisa .Believed to have been
fabricated originally at Taxila, the silver
reliquary consists of two parts—the base and the cover—both being
fluted , and the cover being topped by a figure of long horned
Ibex. It has been dated to around the
eighth or ninth decades of the first century BCE and bears six
inscriptions written in pointillē style, in Kharoshthi
script and Gandhari/north-western Prakrit. In form, the silver vessel is wholly
atypical of Buddhist reliquaries and is
said to have been originally a wine goblet, similar to others found
in Gandhara and Kapisa regions. The vessel
was later reused by Apraca king Indravarman as a Reliquary to enshrine Buddhist relics in a
stüpa raised by Indravarman. The inscriptions on
the silver reliquary have been investigated by Richard Saloman of
University of Washington, in an article published in Journal of
American Oriental Society and provide important new
information not only about the history of the kings of Apraca
dynasty themselves but also about their relationships with other
rulers of the far north-western region of traditional India i.e
modern northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan around the beginning of Christian era
.

The
inscriptions provide important new information on the history of
Apraca dynasty of Bajaur, including
the names of several previously unknown persons, and on their
relationship with Indo-Iranian king Kharayosta --
the Yuvaraya Kharaosta "Kamuio" of
the Mathura Lion Capital
inscriptions or Kharaoṣta (Kharahostes) of the coins. Prince Kharaosta in the Bajaur silver
vessel has been described as Yagu-raja as contrasted to
Yuva-raja of the Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions or the
Kshatrapa of the coins. First part Yagu- of the title
Yagu-raja used by Kharaosta (Kamuio) is a form of
Yauvuga or Yauga or Yaüvasa-- a Kushana title, which is identified with popular
Turkic title Yabgu (i.e.
tribal chief) . Since this reference pertains to pre-Christian
and therefore, pre-Kushana/Pre-Turkic times, this conclusively
proves that the 'use of a title is no proof of a ruler's
ethnic affinities .The
silver reliquary defintely indicates some sort of connections
between prince Kharaosta (Khara(y)osta) and the Apraca kings of
Bajaur but it is hard to say if the connections are merely of
succession only or were formed by blood or ethnic bonds
also.The inscription no. II on
the silver reliquary was inscribed by yaguraja
Khara(y)osata who was the first owner of the silver vessel and
the inscriptions no. III, IV, VI and VI on the same
reliquary were later inscribed by Apraca king Indravarman which
show the latter as the owner of the same vessel.Inscriptions also verify that
Apraca king Indravarman had later converted the silver vessel to a
Buddhist Reliquary for the stüpa he had raised in Bajaur.The connection of
Apraca kings with Yagu-raja Kharaosta has raised
chronological questions which call into doubt previously
established norms about him and also seem to require a considerably
earlier date for the Mathura Lion
Capital Inscriptions (in which he is twice mentioned as
Yuvaraja Kharaosta), than is usually attributed to
him.Kharaosta is believed to have been
the ruler of Cukhsa—a territory comprising districts of Peshawar,
Hazara, Attock and Mianwal in northern Pakistan .The Apraca kings of Bajaur are believed to have been an
important allies of Kharaosta (Kamuio) in helping to protect his
borders from ever-present threat of invasion from the west
.It does not, therefore, seem unlikely
that Arta (Mahakshatrapa), Kharaosta Kamuio (Yuvaraja), Aiyasia Kamuia (Agra-maheshi—the chief queen of
Rajuvula), Maues or Moga (Gandhara
king) as well as the rulers of Apraca dynasty of Bajaur were
probably all related and were connected by some sort of familial
connections.The fact that Kharaosta, his father Arta and his daughter
Aiyasi were Kamuio and
Kamuia as evidenced by Mathura Lion Capital inscriptions and
coins, it becomes very probable that the Apraca dynasty was also
probably a Kamuia (Kamboja) dynasty.As
stated before, surname Kamuia is simply a
Kharoshthised/Prakritised form of Pali
Kambojika or Sanskrit
Kamboja .

The territory around the findspot of the silver reliquary was the
stronghold of the warlike Indo-Iranian
people called Aspasioi who had formed the
western branch of the Ashvakas of the
Sanskrit texts . Prashant Srivastava of the
University of Lucknow, has recently written a research monograph
which aims to highlight the significant role played by the family
of the Apraca kings in ancient Indian history, and has connected
this family of the Apraca kings with the Ashvaka clan . But, the Ashvaka clan
was none else than a sub-branch of the greater Kamboja tribe spread
on either side of the Hindukush.SeeAshvakas. These people, identified as sub-branch of
the Kambojas, had earlier offered stubborn
resistance to Macedonian invader
Alexander in 326 BCE and later
also constituted an important component of the grand army of
Chandragupta Maurya . According
to H.W. Bailey, the dynastic/geographic title Apraca/Apaca/Avaca
may underlie the modern toponym Bajaur .

Buddhist inscriptions at Mhar or Mahad (district Kolaba)

Second
century AD, Buddhist inscriptions found at
Mhar or Mahad in Kolaba district of Maharashtra, in Bombay
Presidency refers Kumara Kanbhoja Vhenupalita (SanskritKumara Vishnupalita Kambhoja) who
ruled in Kolaba during second c BCE . The translated
inscription runs as follows:

“To the Perfect one!Kumara (or Prince)
Kanbhoja (=Kambhoja) Vhenupalita (=Vishnupalita)’s [5] Lena
(=cave), Chaitiyagriha and eight (8) cells; this much work is
endowed, and two (2) cisterns on each side of the Lena, also a
passage connected with the Lena is presented.It
is charitable gift of the Kumara (or Prince)” .

The estimated date for this inscription is second century AD.
This
demonstrates that the Kambojas from
north-west had settled in Konkan region in Maharashtra prior to the Christianera (100-150 BCE). The name of the prince
i.e Visnupalita Kanbhoja clearly indicates that, by this
time the migrant Kambojas had totally acclimatised to the Indian
environs and iculture. Also, the surname of the prince i.e.
'Kanbhoja' bears the impress of southern or southwestern Indian
influence and is an apparent change from Kamboja which bears
Iranianian or Paisachi influence.

The
existence of Kamboja principality on
west coast of India near Bombay as born out by inscriptional
evidence above may further prove the fact that the Kambojas who had
migrated to and colonizedSri Lanka and later, the Kambuja in
Indo-ChinaPeninsula, may have proceeded there via Gujarat/Bombay around this
time. The above is just one example of Kamboja
principalities. The evidence exists that there were more Kamboja
principalities located in western, south-western/southern
India.

Clay Seal from Sugh (Haryana)

One clay sealing has been found from Sugh near Barya, situated on
the western bank of the river Jamuna which
bears the following legend in Kharoshthi:
'Khaharala.putrasya Kambuja.raspaga
.The second word of the
legend denotes the man who had some kind of connection with the
Kambojas.Either
he had come from Kamboja, or he belonged to
some local family of Kambojas .We find
that the villages surrounding the find-spot (Sugh) have their main
populace of the Kamboja farmers.It looks
very likely that the author of this seal belonged to a section of
Kambojas who had transplanted themselves in Punjab/Haryana around second/first century
BCE.The person named Khaharal,
son of a Raspag Kamboj, appears to be some local ruler but the
information is insufficient and incomplete, therefore no final
conclusion can be drawn (J.L.Kamboj).

Bandoda/Bandora Charters of Bhoja rulers

An Inscription or Charter belonging to the Bhoja rulers of Goa, dating 5th century AD, issued by
Bhoja ruler, executed by Nidhivara and written by
Buddhadasa of the Kamboja (Brahmin) gotra have been found
in Bandora or Bandoda, Goa . Beside Kamboja gotra, the charters
from Bhoja rulers also contain reference to Sarasvati/Paddya, Bharadvaja and Hariti Brahmin gotras. Scholars state that Kamboja gotra of the
Bandoda/Bandora Charter of Goa is related to Kamboja clan from
Afghanistan .

Buddhist Inscriptions at Sanchi

Luders's
inscriptions, (No 176 and 472 in the list), refer to the gift of a
monk Kaboja (Kamboja)
from Nandi-Nagara made at SanchiBuddhistStupa .
According to IHQ: "The monk was a Kamboja of Nandi-Nagara which
might have been a place in the neighborhood of Sanch" .
But no
evidence of any ancient place called Nandi-Nagara situated
near Sanchi (in
Malawa) is
attested.Probably the Nandi Nagara of the
Sanchi Inscriptions refers to modern Nandode (Rajpipli) in Gujarat which place in earlier times was also known as
Nandan Nagar or Nandi-puri .

The above pieces of evidence pieced together further support the
presence of Kambojas in south-western India
in the post-Christian times.

Kadi grant of Chalukya king Mularaja

Kadi grant of Chalukya king
Mularaja states that on the occasion of solar eclipse in
Samvat 1043, Maharajadhiraja Mularaja, while residing in
Anahilapataka, granted ardhastama of Mothera in town of
Kamboika to illustrious Mulanathadeva
(temple) established at Mandali in the Varddhi visaya . The
grant is said to have been written by a Kayastha named Kanchana and
ends with the words “of the illustrious Mularaja”. On further
prakratization, name Kamoika referred to
in above grant changed to Kamboi prior to 15th c
AD. 15th century historical records mention this town as
Kamboi . Scholars state that Kamboika of the
Mularaja grant derives itself from SanskritKambojika (Kamojika => Kamboyika
=> Kamboika ==> Kamboi) . Kambojika/Kambojaka is Pali
name for Kamboja. This name in Kathiawar reminds us of Kamboja
immigrants from north-west who had
settled in Gujarat/Kathiawar in second/first
century BCE. This town in all probability belonged to and
was named after the Kamboja settlers. The Kamboi also has an
ancient and famous Jaina Tirtha (pilgrim place)
by the same name which located in the center of the town.

Assam-patra of king Valabhadeva

Horses of
Kambojas also find glorious mention in inscriptions of ancient
Assam.Verse twelve (12) of the third
Assam-patra (1185 AD) of king Valabhadeva of Assam proudly
refers to him as a sole one who knows how to wield the sword, the
chief of those skilled in the use of dagger and is sole and supreme
in the science of archery and the rider of the host of Kamboja
horses and best of elephants .

Bengal Inscriptions

Monghyr inscription of Pala king Devapala

The Monghyr grant of PalaDevapala (rule: 810 AD - 850 AD) states that after
defeating the Hunas (of Punjab), Pala king
Devapala had visited north-west Kamboja as
his Kamboja steeds are said to have gladdened after meeting their
sweet hearts (i.e. Kamboja mares) in the Kamboja land . This
inscriptions indisputably proves that not only there were Kamboja
horses but also there were mercenary soldiers (cavalry) from
Kamboja .

R. C. Majumdar writes: "The Palas employed mercenary forces and
certainly recruited horses from Kamboja (Ins B.8 V 13).Mr
N.G.Majumdar has rightly observed that if the
horses could be brought into Bengal from North-Western Frontiers of
India during the Pala period, it is not unreasonable to suppose
that the traders and the adventurers could also have found their
way into that province" . "Mercenary soldiers (specially
the cavalry) might have also been recruited from Kamboja and some
of them might have been influential chiefs" .

Dinajpore Raj Palace Pillar Inscription

Dinajpore
Raj Palace Pillar Inscription of Kambojanvaya Gaudapati
referred to as Kunjaraghatavarsa has been found from
Dinajpore in Bengladesh from among the ruins of Bangad or Bannagar, which
commemorates the rule of Kambojas in north-west Bengal. The
scholars are generally of the opinion that the Kamboja rule in
Bengal began from about the middle of tenth century AD and the
Pillar Inscription is stated to have been erected in 966 AD .
Pillar Inscription refers to its author as “Kambojanvayaja
Gaudapati” i.e Lord of Gauda, born in the Kamboja
line . Dinajpore Pillar Inscription attests that
Kambojanvaya Gaudapati was a Siva
devotee and had constructed a Siva temple in Bengal .

Irda Copper Plate of Balasor, Orissa

Irda Copper Plate (Irda Tamara.patra) grant is another
very important source which powerfully attests the Kamboja rule in
north-west Bengal. The Plate was discovered in 1931 from a
landlord named Mrityunjaya Narayan Prahraj of Irda, District
Balasor in Orissa. The
Inscription was edited by Dr N. G. Majumdar and was published with
his comments in 1934 in the Epigraphia Indica . The Irda Copper
plate grant is written in Sanskrit tongue
and has 49 lines of text written in ancient Bengali script. The Vamsa or the tribal identity of the rulers mentioned in the Irda
Copper Plate is specifically mentioned as Kamboja since Rajayapala,
the father of this Nayapala has specifically been referred to as
Kamboja-Vamsha-Tilaka (i.e an Ornament of the Kamboja clan
or Glory of the Kamboja tribe). The Irda Copper plate grant was
issued by Parameshvara Paramabhattaraka Maharajadhiraja
Nayapala in the month of Karttika, in 13th regnal year of
the king from the city of Priyangu. It records the grant of land by
Nayapala in Dandabhukti-mandala within the
Vardhamana-bhukti . On paleographic grounds Dinajpore
Pillar Inscriptions as well the Irda Copper plate have been
assigned to the second half of 10th c AD . Hence the scholar
community now generally agrees that the Kambojanvaya
Gaudapati of Dinajpore Pillar Inscription and the
Rajayapala of the Irda Copper Plate who assumed the
imperial title Kamboja.vamsha.tilaka Paramasaugata
Maharajadhiraja Parameshvara Paramabhattaraka Rajyapala
belong to the same Kamboja family and
occupied not only north Bengal (Gauda), but also the south-western
portion of the province including Vardhamanabhukti . But whereas
the Dinajpore Pillar inscription refers to just one Kamboja ruler
with a title “Kambojanvaya Gaudapati” (Kunjaraghatavarsa), the Irda
Copper Plate inscription, on the other hand, mentions generation
after generation of the Kamboja-Pala rulers of Bengal i.e
Rajyapala, Narayanapala and Nayapala etc. The Kamboja-Pala kings of
Irda Copper Plate had ruled north-west Bengal in 10/11th century .
Another known Kamboja king of this line was Dharmapala who ruled in
Dandabhukti-mandala in early eleventh c AD . He finds
mention in the Tirmulai Inscription dated in the 13th
regnal year of Rajendra Chola (c.
1012- 1044 AD) and hence was contemporary of Pala ruler Mahipala-I
as well as of Rajendra Chola. Dharmapala was allied with Rajendra
Chola against the Palas of Bengal.

Kalanda Copper Plate of Balasor, Orissa

Yet another charter called Kalanda Copper Plate grant shedding
light on the Kambojas rulers of Bengal has been discovered from
Balasore District, Orissa. It was first noticed by Dr (Mrs) Snigdha
Tripathy in the Orissa Historical Research Journal and
came from another village called Kalanda. The grant was edited by
K. V. Ramesh . This grant was also issued by Kamboja king
Parameshvara Paramabhattaraka Maharajadhiraja
Nayapala, younger brother of king Narayanapala, son of
king Rajyapala and Queen Bhagyadevi, from the city of Pryangu, on
11th day of Asvina in the 14th year of his reign. City of Priyangu
was the capital of the rulers of this line .

The Bhaturiya Inscription of Rajyapala

King Rajyapla, the author of the Bhaturiya Inscription is
believed by many scholars to be the same Rajyapala who has been
referred to as Kamboja-Vamsa-Tilaka in the Irda Copper
Plate Inscription. R. C. Majumdar writes : "The Bhaturiya
Inscription of Rajyapla refers to name Rajyapla whose commands were
obeyed by the Mlechhas, Angas, Kalingas, Odras
(Orissa), Pandyas, Karnatas, Latas, Suhmas, Gurjaras, Kiratas and in
Cina; while the claim is certainly exaggerated, it is
significant that Rajyapala’s conquests included Anga, Vanga Suhma
and not Gauda or Pandraka.So it has been suggested
that only north Bengal was the home of Rajyapala and this Rajayapla
has been identified with Rajyapalal of Irda Copper Plate, belonging
to the Kamboja-kula" . This if true, would be the third most
important inscription about the Kamboja rulers of Bengal.

Bangad or Bangar Grant of Mahipala I

Bangad Charter of Mahipala I is
the third very important ancient source about Kamboja rule in
Bengal. The Charter asserts that "He (=Mahipala I) had
recovered his paternal territories usurped by those who had no
claim to their administration". The same fact has also been
repeated in the Aamgaachhi Charter of
Vigrahapala-3. The History and Culture of the Indian
People comments: "Who were the usurpers, the inscription
does not tell, but other evidences indicate that the rulers
belonging to the Kamboja family were in possession of the north and
west Bengal". Scholars believe that Mahipala's Charter alludes
to the forcible seizure of northern parts of Bengal by "the Kamboja
usurpers" during reign of Gopala II or Vigrahapala II of the
Pala dynasty, which the great king
Mahipala I, claims to have won back by the force of his arms

Paschimabhag Copper Plate (Sylhet Plate) also contains references
to Kamboja rulers of Bengal. This inscriptionwas introduced by A.
H. Dani in a Paper read in the Asian Archaeology Conference Delhi,
1961; and five years later the same inscription was also edited by
Kamalakanda Gupta Chaudhury in the Nalini Kanta Bhattasalai
Commemmoration Volume published by Dacca Museum in 1966. The Copper
Plate was issued by Sricandra (C 925 -975 AD) of the Candra dynasty
which mentions the city of Devaparvata on the Ksiroda river in the
Samatata country and refers to the Kambojas while describing the
achievements and victories of Srticandra’s father, king
Trailokyacandra (C 905 -25 AD). Verse 7 of the Paschimabhag plate
runs as follows:

Ksiroda=anu Devaparvata iti srimat=sad-etat=puram

Yatr=agantu-janasya vismaya-rsah
'Kamboja-vart-adbhutaih |

Latambi-vanam=atra navika=satair=anvisya
siddh-ausadhi-

Vyahara iti ha srutas =Samatatan=nirjitya
yat-sainkaih|| .

Translation by A.H.Dani:
“This is that glorious city of Devaparvata, the jewl of Ksiroda
(river), where by the wonderful news of the Kambojas, the feeling
of astonishment of the incoming people (was aroused): it was heard
by saying at Samatata that having desired to get here at the
Lalambi forest, the perfect medicine by the help of hundred
sailers, (the Kambojas) were defeated by him”

The inscription indicates that Samatata was
attacked and possibly captured by Kambojas
of Gauda who had come to Lalambi forest
(forest around the Lalamai range) and attacked the capital of
Samatata. Soon afterwards, Trailokyacandra had measured swords with
them and defeated the Kambojas and recovered Lalambi back from them
. “The Kambojas may have been mentioned as the Gaudas in the
Candra plate.But the interpretation of the verse as given
by A.H.Dani is very doubtful.The
verse is obsecure and does not seem to contain any reference to the
defeat of Kambojas” .

Translation by Kamalakanda Gupta Chaudhury:
“In cosequence of the strange news of Kambojas, the new-comers
to the illustrious capital, like the venrerable mountains (i.e.
like Mandara Mountains), in the waters of Ksiroda(sea), were struck
with feelings of wonder, whose soldiers conquered Samatata where
was situated the forest of Lalamvi, traditionally said to have been
filled with sure medicinal herbs sought by hundreds of persons
suffering from morbid affections of the nervous system”

Translation by D.C.Sircar: After having conquered Samatata,
Traiklokyacandra’s soldiers exclaimed, “The prosperous Devaparvata
lying on the Ksiroda is this city where the visitor has the feeling
of astonishment at the wonderful reports about the Kambojas and
having searched the Lalambi forest in the area through hundreds of
boarment, they heard the tales about superbly efficacious medicinal
herbs” . According to D. C. Sircar “Shortly before the
Candra invasion of Samatata, the city of Devaparvata seems to have
been devastated by the Kambojas”

Interpretation by Nagendra K.Singh: 'Trailokyacandra’s stronghold was in
the Devaparvata area and he captured power in the whole of Samatata
area and at that time the (wonderful) news of the Kambojas
capturing power in northern and western Bengal was heard'
.

Whatever the interpretation, this inscriptional evidence positively
shows that the Kambojas were considerable rulers of northern and
western Bengal and parts of Samatata from the early tenth century
since the above historical event relates to Trailokyacandra who
ruled in Samatata from 905 AD through to 925 AD.

Inscriptions of Rajendra Chola

Karandai (Tanjavur or Tanjore) inscription

Karandai (Tanjavur or Tanjore) plates (v.48) (Sanggham Copper Plate
Charter) of about 1020 AD issued by Rajendra Chola (c. 1012- 1044
AD) in the eighth year of his reign states that a Kambhoja king
solicited friendship of Rajendra Chola by sending him for the
protection of his Royalty (atmalaksmim) a victorious war-chariot
with which he (Kamboja king) had defeated the armies which opposed
him in battle. The inscription issued in the eighth year of his
reign (1020 AD) contains a significant verse in its separate
Sanskrit section and it refers to one Kamboja Raja.

Kamboja-rajo ripu-raja sena-jaitrena yen=
ajayad=ahaveshu |

tarn prahinot prartthita-mitra-bhavo yennai ratham ||
.

The inscription says that, in order to seek Chola’s friendship,
Kamboja king presented to Rajendra Chola a chariot with which he
(Kamboja raja) had won his enemies in many battles .

The Kamboja king mentioned in the Karandai inscriptions is believed
to be Dharmapala of the Kamboja-Pala Dynasty of
Bengal who ruled in Dandabhukti in the first quarter of 11th
century. One king called Dharmapala ruling in Dandabhukti also
finds mention in the Tirmulai Inscription which Rajendra
Chola had issued in his 13th regnal year (about 1025 AD) . There
can not be any doubt that Dharmapala of the Tirumalai Inscription
of king Rajendra Chola is Kamboja king Dharmapala of Dandabhukti
who was a scion of the Kamboja dynasty to which Nayapala,
Narayanapala and Rajyapalal of the Irda Copper Plate grant &
Kalanda Copper Plate grant belonged . He was ruling in
Dandabhukti-mandala at this time and therefore, was a contemporary
of Rajendra Chola. When Dharmapala's kingdom was threatened by
illustrious Pala ruler Mahpala-I, the Kamboja ruler Dharmapala
appears to have sought friendship and help with Rajendra Chola
against the Pala ruler by forming an
alliance with the Chola king and presenting him a valuable Ratha
(Chariot) as a token of friendship. As a consequence, Rajendra Chola led his
victorious northern expedition to the banks of the Ganges and also
met Dharmapala in Dandabhukti. This fact demonstrates
Kamboja rulers' weakened position and Rajendra Chola’s political
influence in Bengal and Bengladesh. (Some scholars however,
think that “Kamboja king sent his ratha as a friendly present to
Rajendra Chola to avoid war with the latter" ). (See also:
Chidambram Inscription below).

Chidambaram Inscription

An inscription in Tamil language,
found in Chidambaram refers to one Kamboja (Kambosha-raja)
ruler who made a beautiful stone gift as a curio (katchi) to
(Kulotunga) Rajendrasoladevar which with
latter’s permission, was embedded in front row of the edirambalam
of the Nataraja temple . Though K. A. Nilakanta Sastri links this
Kamboja king of Chidambram inscription to Cambodia (Kampuchea) ,
but numerous other scholars say that the Kamboja king mentioned in
Chidambram inscriptions is this Dharampala of Kambojlineage
who was ruling in Dandbhukti-mandala of west Bengal during
early 11th c AD and was a contemporary of Rajendra Chola . The same Kamboja king
had also presented to the Chola king a valuable Ratha
(chariot) as a gift (See also:
Karandai inscription above).

Mysore Inscriptions

Hoysala Dynasty

Sila Sasana of Balagami, dated 1054 AD

An Inscription of c. AD 1054 from Balagami in Mysore belonging
to early Hoysala period informs us that the
merchants were generally organized in powerful guilds and corporations which often transcended
political divisions and were therefore, not much affected by the
wars and revolutions going on about them. The most
celebrated guilds mentioned in South Indian Inscriptions of early
medieval era are the Manigrammam and Nanadesis or
Ainnurrvar. Manigrammama is considered a corruption of
Vanigrammam -- an association of mechants. The Ainnurrvar,
the Five Hundred Svamis of Ayyavolepura (Aihole), were the most
celebrated of the medieval South Indian Merchant guilds. Like the
great kings of the age, they had prasasti of their own which
recounted their traditions and achievements. They were protectors
of the Vira-Bananjudharma i.e the law of the noble
merchants—Bananju, being obviously derived from SanskritVanija, merchant. This dharma was
embodied in 500 vira-sasanas -- edicts of heroes. They had the
picture of a hill on their flags and were noted for their daring
and enterprise throughout the world. They claimed descent from the
lines of Vasudeva, Khandaji and Mulabhadra
and were followers of the creed of Vishnu, Mahesvara and Jina. They visited various
lands like Chera, Chola, Pandya, Maleya, Magadha,
Kausala, Saurashtra, Dhanushtra,
Kurumbha, Kamboja, Golla, Lala, Barvara,
Parsa, Nepala, Ekapada,
Lambakarna, Istrirajya and Gholamukha etc .They
penetrated the land by sea routes and lands into regions of 6
countries.The traded elephants, horses, sapphires,
moonstones, pearls, rubies & other gems, cardamoms, cloves,
bdellium, sandal, camphor & other perfumes & drugs - they
sold their goods whole-sale or hawked them about on their
shoulders.The carried their merchandise on Assess,
buffalos, adorned with red trappings.The above claim of
trading corporations' mythicalancestry is repeated in another account of 11th
c.AD.The reference to Kamboja as well as horses
in the above inscription shows that Kamboja of north-west is
meant.

(XVI) Tamra Sasana of Belur dated 1117 AD

This inscription gives detailed account of the numerous conquests
of king Vishnuvardhana of Hoysala (1106 - 1152 AD). It enumerates his numerous
glorious achievements in the battle fields and also glorifies the
famed horses of Kambojas stating that "....he (Vishnuvardhana)
had made the earth tremble under the tramp of his Kamboja horses” .This inscription of king
Vishnuvardhana of Hoysala further reinforces the contents of the
'"Sasana of Balagami, dated 1054" as mentioned above
that South Indian Merchant guilds indeed traded in Kamboja horses
north-west Kamboja and Vishnuvardhana of Mysore had a famed fleet
of the Kamboja horses in his cavalry which he may have recruited
through these merchant guilds of South India.

Sangama Dynasty of Vijayanagara, A.D.1336-1478

Tamra Sasana of Hassan, dated 1335(?)

The copper plate inscription is said to belong to king Harihara I
(14th c AD) of the Sangama Dynasty. Not much is known Of Harihara I
but Bukka Raya, whom he appointed as his Yuvaraja, was
quite famous. With the assistance of Vidyatirthamuni, he became
very great and having freed from enemies a hundred royal cities,
counting from Dorasmudra, ruled over an empire perfect in its seven parts. Though the
establishment of the capital is attributed to Harihara I, and his
naming it Vidyanagari after Vidyaranyasripada, the building of the
city and the transformation of its name to Vijayanagari or city of
victory are said to have been the work of Bukka Raya. In
the old inscriptions, the latter has the special titles like
"Destroyer of hostile kings", "Champion over kings who break their
word", "Sultan over the Hindu Kings", "Master of the eastern,
western and southern oceans". The inscription also says that he was
“----- valiant as Arjuna among the
Pandavas, he mounted one of the elephants
at the point of compass, and set out on an expedition of victory:
was dreaded as Yama; many kings fell before
him, as he thus marched forth: He was a terror to the Turushkas, the Konkana (king) Sankaparya
suffered great disgrace; the Gurjaras were
seized with trembling; the Kambhojas, the
Andhras and Kalingas were
defeated....” .Though the inscription above is
historical, but the events mentioned therein do not all seem to be
historical.But indeed it does refer to some Kamboja
principality near the borders of Vijayanagara empire, neighbors to
the Konkanas, Gurjaras, Kalingas, Angas which means it may refer to
Kamboja settlement in Kathiawar/Saurashtra or in Malwa
somewhere.

Sila Sasana of Belur, dated 1380 AD

The beginning part of this inscription is not known. The
inscription was authored by Sri Vira Harihara Maharaja II of the
Sangama Dynasty of the Vijayanagara Empire around 1380 AD and
refers to the conquests of some one named Gundappa
Dandindtha (Gundappa Dandinatha). The a part of the
text of inscription runs thus: “.....Having encountered in
battle and overcome the kings of Anga, Ganga, Kalinga, Kathara, Kamboja, Simhala..., Magadha, Malava, Kerala, Jiddiya,
China, Joniga..., Chola, Pandya, Vidarbha, Saurashtra, Kuru, Maru,
Pancha, Panchala..., Telunga and, as far as Parasika, he (Gundappa Dandindtha) set up pillars
of victory in Kolahana, Kasmira, Mahabota, Kakamukha, Ekapada,
Gholamukha and in all these regions caused his name to be greatly
renowned by this Gunda Dandddhinatha....“ . Again, the inscription above is historical,
but the events mentioned therein do not all seem to be historical.
But again it does refer to some Kamboja principality near the
borders of Vijayanagara empire and may refer to Kamboja
principality in/around Kathiawar/Saurashtra or in the neighborhood of Malwa somewhere.

Inscription dated Krodhana Samvat 1374 (AD 1445)

This
inscription contains a genealogy of
Deva Raya II of Sangama
Dynasty of Vijayanagara (15th c AD). Deva Raya I was succeeded by
Vijaya Raya and his son Devambika, but the history is not very
clear at this period, and Vijaya Raya’s reign was a short one. He
was followed by his son Deva Raya II, also called Praudha Deva
Raya, who had assumed the special title Gajabentekara or
elephant hunter. The mother was Narayanambika, and one inscription
describes him as having received the throne
from his elder sister, which may perhaps refer to the princess
married into the Bahmani family. The inscription gives details of
Deva Raya II's conquest and power over neighboring princes.
It is
claimed in the inscription that he made the faces of Turushkas shriveled up, terrified the Konkana
king Santana, made the Andhras ran into frontier hills, paralysed the Gurjaras power, made the Kanaujas lose their courage
and also broke down the Kalingas.The
sovereigns of the Anga, Vanga, Kanouja, Kambhoja and Nepala were his
sub-servients doing the menial work of holding his umbrella,
Chamara stick or vessal . He also had 10,000 Mussalman horsemen in his service. He died on the
24th of May 1446. He had a brother Parvati Raya Odeyar, who in 1425
ruled the Terakanambi kingdom, in the south of Mysore district.
Again the
inscription refers to prince of Kambhoja and for the same reasons
as above, this may be a Kamboja principalirt somewhere near
Gujarat/Maharashtra on the borders of Vijayanagara.

Tuluva Dynasty of Vijayanagara, A.D.1491-1570

Tamra Sasana of Devanhalli dated ~1550 (?)

Benjamin Lewis Rice dates this inscription to 1580 AD but perhaps
it should be dated earlier. Sadasiva Raya (1542-1570 c AD) of
Tuluva Dynasty, son of Sri Ranga
Raja, a deceased brother of Achyuta by the same mother, was raised
to the throne by the great minister Rama Raja (his brother-in-law)
as well as the councilors. He is said to be the chief among the
kings, is said to have subdued all his enemies in Suragiri
(Penukonda), and brought the whole land into subjection to his
commands and ....he is praised with folded hands by the
kings of Kambhoja, Bhoja, Kalinga, Karahata and others who salute
him saying: "May you conquer, may you live long" .

Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara 1542-1646 AD

Copperplate record of the Vijayanagar king Tirumalaraya I

Copper
plate of the Vijayanagar king Tirumalaraya I (1565-1572 AD) of
Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara states that Tirumala maharaya adorned the golden
throne of Karnataka, ruled the whole world, reduced to submission
the Rattas and called himself lord of Kalyanpura, Chalikka
Chakravarty, had the title of victor over Gonga of Komaranikota,
and displacer of the Raya of Roddi, champion over kings who break
their word, rajadhiraja rajaparamesvara, champion over the three
kings, Suratrana of the Hindu Bayas with these and other titles,
daily praised with folded hands by Kambhoja, Bhoja,
Kalinga, Karahata and other princes who had received the rank of
door-keepers with such expressions as Victory !Long life .

The Vilapaka Grant of Venkata II

The
Vilapaka Grant of Venkata II (1586-1614 AD) son of king Sriranga of
Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara states that the kings Kambhoja, Bhoja, and
Karhata as well as of Ratta and Magadha were defeated by Venkata,
the donor of the grant The same grant states that Venkat
II was ruling the earth from Setu to Himavat .

All the above inscription refer to the prince of Kambhoja and other
kingdom. There appears to have been a Kambohja
principality situated somewhere near Gujarat/Maharashtra on the borders of Vijayanagara. This may
explain as to why so many inscriptions from the rulers of various
dynasties of Vijayanagara claim to have won victories over princes
of Kambhoja and others like those of Gurjaras, Bhojas, Andhras,
Angas, Kalingas and other kingdoms situated on the borders of
Vijayanagara empire.

Ancient Inscriptions of Sinhala

Kambojas
also find numerous mention in ancient inscriptions of Sinhala or
Sri
Lanka. In fact, the Kambojas (Kaboja/Kabojiya in
ancient Sinhalese) and the Damelas (Tamil/Dravida) are the two most
referenced ancient ethnic communities inhabiting the Sinhala island
during pre-Christian times and of these two, the Kambojas are more
nemerously mentioned than the Damelas showing thereby that Kambojas
were indeed the predominant Aryan speaking colonists of ancient Sri
Lanka. The following is the list of ancient and medieaval age
inscriptions which refer to Kambojas in Sri Lanka.

Topographical map of Sri Lanka.

[1] No.622:Gamika-Kabojhaha lene (The cave of the village-councillor
Kamboja)

[2] No.623:Gamika-Siaa-putra gamika-Kabojhaha lene (The cave of the
village-councillor Kamboja, son of the village-councillor
Siva')

[4] No 625 (2): gamika Kabojhaha ca
sava-satasoyesamage pati (The cave of the son of the
village-councillor Siva. May there be the attainment of the Path of
Beatitude for the village-councillor Kamboja and for all beings
.

[5] No.553:Kabojhiya-mahapugiyana Manapadaiane
agataanagat-catu-disa-agaia ([The cave] Manapadassana of the
members of the Great Corporations of Kambojiyas, [is dedicated] to
the Saiügha of the four quarters, present and absent) .

[6] No.990:Gota-Kabojhi(ya]na parumaka-Gopalaha bariya upasika-Citaya lepe
iagaio (The cave of the female lay-devotee Citta, wife of
Gopala, the chief of the incorporated Kambojiyas, [is dedicated] to
the Saiügha) .

[7] A Mediaeval era Inscription, found from
Polonnaruva in 1887 near Vishnu Temple relates to Maharaja
Kalinglankeshwara Bahu Veer-raja Nissanka-Malla Aprati Malla
Chakravarati who caused one Charity House to be constructed and
named after him as Nissankamalla-Daan-Griha. The southern gate of
this Charity House is named as Kamboja Vasala
.

[8] Mediaval age inscription (1187-1193 AD),
found from Ruvanveli Dagva, in Anaradhapura in Sri Lanka. It refers
to Kambojdin people, which is modified version of Kamboja. The text
in romanised form appears beloe:

Ancient name of Sri Lanka is Sinhala and it is stated that this
name was given to this island by Sinhala community. But who were
the Sinhalese? Very strangely, the term Sinhala does not occure in
any of the numerous ancient inscriptions of Sri Lanka whereas
Kamboja occure most numerously. Name Sinhala occurred for the first
time in Dipavamsa and later in Mahavamsa which are belated Sinhalese creations of
5th and sixth century AD respectively. It is mentioned in the
Mahavamsa that the Island (Sri Lanka) got its name from Vijay and
his companions who were called Sinhalas since their ancestors came
from place called Sinhapura.

There
is an epic reference to one
Sinhapura kingdom located on upper Indus which shared
borders with Kashmira, Trigartas, Daravas,
Abhisari, Urasa, Balhikas Daradas and Kambojas.See
trans:[761969]. After conquering Trigarta (Jallandhar Doab),
Arjuna moves to Abhisara (Naushehra,
Rajauri), Darava (Poonch), Uraga
(Urasa or Hazara) and after that to Sinhapura and so
forth..... The sequence of Arjuna's war expedition is
clearly proceeding from south-east to north/north-west
direction. This shows that Sinhapura of the epic
Mahabharata was located to the north or
north-west of Urasa or Hazara as
well as Kashmir.

Seventh century ChinesepilgrimHiun Tsang also attests one
Sinhapura (Sang-ho-pu-lo) situated about
700 Li (or 140 miles) to south-east from Taksashila (Taxila) .
This would locate Sinhapura in Taki in Punjab which is a plain
country. However, Sinhapura is described by Hiuen Tsang as a
network of mountain defiles which will not apply to the plain
country like Taki . For the same reason, the town of Sanghohi
identified by M. V. de St Martin with it can not be the place in
question .

Alexander Cunningham
identifies Hiuen Tsang's Sinhapura with Keta or Ketaksh. If this is
accepted, its distance from Taksashila comes out to be about 350 Li
(70 miles) instead of 700 Li (or 140 miles) (per
Si-yu-Ki). This poses serious difficulties in accepting Keta
located on north of the Salt-Range as the seat of Ancient
Sinhapura. “This identification to which Cunningham himself did
not adhere, has since been conveniently established by Stein to his
own satisfaction and that of Dr Buhler” .

Thomas Watters disagrees with Stein and Buhler and comments that
"the first paragraph of Hiuen Tsang on Sinhapura is full of
serious difficulties and if the rest of the narrative from
Sinhapura onwards is to be assumed correct, then the “north-east”
should be substituted for “south-east” in the statement of
direction of Sinhapura from Taxksashila.Thus, from the
context here, it would seem clear that Hiuen Tsang places Sinhapura
to the north of Taksashila rightly or wrongly" . Very
interestingly “Fang Chih”, also locates Sinhapura to the
north of Taksashila .

Thus, if Sinhapura was in the north of Taksashila as is
also corroborated by Mahabharata, then Sinhapura must have lied in
ancient Kamboja. It is notable that ancient Kamboja
confederation had extended from Kapisa to
Swat and Rajaury in south-east and from Kapisa to Kabul in the
south-west, and it probably included Ghazni as well .

Ancient Sinhala

A section of this people had transplated themselves from north-west and had settled in Kathiawar/Saurashtra
prior to Christian era. To perpetuate the
memory of their ancestral home Sinhapura located in north-west in
Kamboja, these immigrants to Saurashtra/Gujarat appear to have
founded another Sinhapura in Kathiawar.
There is one place called Sihor near Gulf of
Cambay in Kathiawad. It had been a capital
of the GohilRajputs in
the 17th century. The Charter of Maitraka
king Dhruvasena I (525 AD-545 AD) indeed addresses.this place as
Sinhapura.. Thus Sinhapura is indeed attested in
Kathiawar. Kamboi, a town
located 10 km west of Chanasma on the Harij-Mehsana road north
of Kathiawar and the Gulf of Cambay are also
said to hold relics of Sanskrit Kamboja .

Thus, it
seems very likely that the Kambojas were same as the Sinhalas and
it were the Kambojas who had colonized Sri Lanka centuries prior to the beginning of Christian era. This also explains as to why
there is no reference to name “Sinhala” while ethnic name Kamboja
is documented as the most referenced Aryan community in ancient Sri
Lankan inscriptions. The evoulution of Sinhala identity is a
later phenomenon in Sri Lanka and also carries the relics of
ancient Sinhapura of south-west Kashmir i.e the land of ancient Kambojas.

See also

References

The Nations of India at the Battle Between the Pandavas and
Kauravas, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and
Ireland, 1908, pp 313, 331, Dr F. E. Pargiter, (Royal Asiatic
Society of Great Britain and Ireland); Cf: Mahabharata
5.19.21-23.

The New Werner Twentieth Century Edition of the Encyclopaedia
Britannica: A Standard Work of Reference in Art, Literature,
Science, History, Geography, Commerce, Biography, Discovery and
Invention, 1907, p 647-48, Encyclopedias and dictionaries.

It can hardly be doubted that the Zend Avesta alludes to
Cambyses, the elder and Cyrus, the Great under the names of
Kai-Kaus and Kai-Khusru; but probably the actual forms under which
the names are expressed, Kava-us and Hycrava are the adoptions of
the Sassanian age.

Wilson (Visnu Purana, p 374); Lassen (Ind. Alter., p 439) &
Troyer (Rajatarangini, Trans I, p 496) are agreed in identifying
Kamboja and Kamoj, but connection of the name Kamboja with that of
Kabul has altogether been over-looked.

Encyclopaedia Britannica: A Standard Work of Reference in Art,
Literature..., i907, pp 648.

While discussing Kambujiya of the old Persian Inscriptions
(Cambyses/Kambyses of the Greeks, Kamboja of Sanskrit or Kamoj of
Kafirstan/Nurestan), Journal of Royal Asiatic Society, 1990,
observes as under: "Kambujiya, Kabujiya, Cambyses is the true
vernacular orthography of name which was written Kambyses by the
Greeks and Kauvays in Zend....From the name of a king Kambyses was
derived the geographical title of Kamboja (Sanskrit), which is
retained to present days in the Kamoj of Cafferstan....the Persian
historians do not seem to be aware that the name Kabus, which was
born by the Dilemite sovereigns is the same with the Kaus of
Romance; yet the more ancient form is Kaubus or Kabuj, for latter
name renders the identification also most certain. The Georgians,
even to the present day, name the hero of romance Kapus, still
retaining the labial which has merged in the Persian...." (Journal
of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland,
Published 1990, p 97, Cambridge University, Press for the Royal
Asiatic Society [etc.], By Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain
and Ireland; Cf: Reisen im indischen Archipel, Singapore, Batavia,
Manilla und Japan, 1869, p 216; Die Voelker des Oestlichen Asien:
Studien und Reisen, 1869, p 216, Dr Philip Wilhelm Adolf
Bastian).

Uttarakuru and
the (Parama)-Kamboja located in Trans-Himalaya i.e north of
Hindukush/Karakoram (See Mahabharata 2, Chapters 26/27, Trans:
Kisari Mohan Ganguli.

Kamboja of SW Kashmir/NW Punjab (Mahabharata 7.4.5) and Kuru of
the Kurukshetra, east Punjab. Place name Kura, reminding of Kuru,
is also found in Salt-range, Punjab which contains sixth century
inscription of emperor Toramana, end of 5th c AD. (See: Buddhist
Sects in India, 1998, p 55, Nalinaksha Dutt).

“The fact that Aramaic versions of the edicts were made
indicate that thye Kambojas enjoyed measure of autonomy—and that
they not only preserved their Iranian identity but also governed in
some measure by the members of their own community, on whom was
laid the responsibility of transmitting to them the king’s words,
and having these engraved on stone (History of Zoroastrianism or
Handbuch Der Orientalistik, 1991, p 136, Mary Boyce, Frantz Grenet,
Roger Beck).

Cf: S Konow: "It is impossible to speak with confidence
about these matters. I shall only add that if Kharaosta and his
father Arta were Kambojas, the same may have been the case with
Moga and we understand why the Kambojas are sometimes mentioned
togather with the Sakas and Yavanas "(See: Kharoshṭhī
Inscriptions: With the Exception of Those of Aśoka,1991 edition, pp
xxxvii & 36, S Konow‎, Sten Konow - Inscriptions); Ancient
Kamboja, People and the Country, 1981, p 3, J. L. Kamboj; The
Kambojas Through the Ages, 2005, p 11, Kirpal Singh; Ancient India,
1956, pp 220-21, Dr R. K. Mukerjee.

See further references: Watching Cambodia: Ten Paths to Enter
the Cambodian Tangle‎, 1993, p 51, Serge Thion - History. See also:
Tai World: A Digest of Articles from the Thai -Yunnan Project
Newsletter‎, Andrew Walker, Nicholas Tapp - Folklore - 2001 or
Thai-Yunnan Project Newsletter (NEWSLETTER is edited by Scott
Bamber and published in the Department of Anthropology, Research
School of Pacific Studies; printed at Central Printery; the
masthead is by Susan Wigham of Graphic Design (all of The
Australian National University); Cf: Indian Culture, 1934, p 193,
Indian Research Institute - India; cf: Notes on Indo-Scythian
chronology, Journal of Indian History, xii, 21; Corpus
Inscrioptionum Indicarum, Vol II, Part I, pp xxxvi, 36, S. Konow;
Cf: History of Indian Administration, p 94, B. N. Puri.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Indian EpicMahabharata (See: Mahabharata 5.19.21-23; See
also: The Nations of India at the Battle Between the Pandavas and
Kauravas, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and
Ireland, 1908, pp 313, 331, Dr F. E. Pargiter, Royal Asiatic
Society of Great Britain and Ireland) powerfully attests that
Kamboja ruler Sudakshin Kamboj had marshaled and lead an Akshuni
army of wrathful warriors which besides the Kambojas, also
comprised a strong contingent from the Sakas (or Scythians). This
fact clearly proves that the Sakas, in general, were subservient to
the Kamboja ruler Sudakshina Kamboj and that Sudakshina's clan was
ruling over the Sakas. Thus from epic evidence also, the Kambojas
were indeed a royal or ruling Scythian clan and the Scythians had
formed an indispensable part of the Kamboja army. Furthermore, the
Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions also
connect yuvaraja Kharaosta Kamuia (Kamboja) and his daughter
Aiyasi
Kamuia (Kamboja), chief queen of the Scythian Mahakshatrapa
Rajuvula, to the imperial house ruling in Taxila (See: Kharoshṭhī
Inscriptions, Edition 1991, p 36, Sten Konow)

The item belongs to the Shumei Culture Foundation in Otsu,
Japan and was loaned to Los Angeles County Museum of Art, when it
was studied by Richard Saloman of the University of Washington,
USA, who examined and studied the inscriptions and published his
results in Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol 116, No 3,
1996, pp 1418-452.

An Inscribed Silver Buddhist Reliquary of the Time of King
Kharaosta and Prince Indravarman, Jounrnal of the American Oriental
Society, Vol 116, No 3, 1996, pp 1-2, Richard Saloman.

IMPORTANT: Kapisa formed the heart of ancient Kamboja. In fact,
scholars assert that Kapisa is simply an alternative name for the
Kamboja. See main article: Kapisa Province

Arrian calls them Aspasioi. The people derived their name from
Iranian Aspa = horse. Panini calls them
Aśvayanas.

From Sanskrit Ashva = horse. Arrian calls
them Assakenoi. They were the eastern branch of the Ashvakas
mentioned as Ashvakayanas by Panini's Ashtadhyayi, Ashvakas in
Mahabharata.

It is also important to note that the name of one of the kings
of Apraca dynasty is Aspavarman. This king has also been referred
to simply as Aspa i.e Aspa-bhrata-putrasa.
Aspavarman was son of Apraca king Indravarman. The "Aspa" part of
the name (Aspavarman) alludes to connections with the Aspasians or
Aspasioi of Arrian.

Many kings of Apraca dynasty have used Varman as the surname or
last name. Varman as surname implies Kshatriya caste and has been
used by Ksatyriya lineages in ancient times (See entry "Varman" in
Monier Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary; See also
entry "Varman" in: Cologne Digital Sanskrit English
Dictionary). It is worthy to note that the Kambojas have
repeatedly been described as Kshatriyas in ancient Indian texts
(See:Panini's
Astadhyayi Sutra
4.1.168-175; Harivamsa 14.19-20; Vayu Purana, 88.127-43; Manusmriti X.43-44;
Mahabharata
13.33.20-21); Cf also: (Mahabharata 13.35.17-18); Kautiliya's Arthashastra 11.1.1-4. Thus
the fact that many kings of the Apraca dynasty used Varman last
name indicates that the Apraca dynasty belonged to Kshatriya
lineage and hence most likely belonged to the Ashvaka branch of the
Indo-Iranian Kamboja tribe.

The Apracharajas: A History Based on Coins and Inscriptions,
ISBN : 8173200742, 2007, Dr. Prashant Srivastava, Reader, Ancient
Indian History and Archaeology, University of Lucknow.

They find pre-eminent mention as Kambojas in the Rock Edicts V
as well XIII of king Asoka
(reign 273 BCE to 232 BCE) located in Shabaz Garhi in Peshawar
Valley and Mansehra District of North-West Frontier Province,
Pakistan.

NOTE: There is repeated ancient reference to Nandipura or
Nandipuri as a region east of Bharoach in south-east Gujarat on
Karjah river in former Rajpipli State where a second branch of the
Gurjara-Pratiharas ruled during 7th c AD. It’s modern name is
Nandode (Rajpipli) and is located in eastern Gujarat not far from
Bhroach. It has been the Capital of the Gurjara-Pratiharas (See
also: History and Culture of Indian People, The Classical age, p
66,155).

Some Historical Aspects of the Inscriptions of Bengal, 1942, p
379, Benoychandra Sen.

Journal of Indian History‎, 1986, p 182, University of
Allahabad Department of Modern Indian History, University of Kerala
Dept. of History, University of Kerala - India; History of the Koch
Kingdom, C. 1515-1615, 1989, p 9, D. Nath.

A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of
Vijayanagar: From Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar,
1958, p 321, Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta Sastri; The Journal of
the Bihar Purāvid Parishad‎, 1981, p 248, Bihar Purāvid
Parishad.

Based on Copperplate record of the Vijayanagar king
Tirumalaraya, ANNUAL REPORT OF THE MYSORE ARCHEOLOGICAL DEPARTMENT,
1945; Cf: Mysore and Coorg from the inscriptions, 1909, p 122,
Benjamin Lewis Rice.

"Sinhapura, from which the original Sinhalese came to
Ceylon, is said in the Mahavamsa to have been in the country of
lala i.e Lata. If Lata be taken to correspond to Gujerat, the
Sinhapura in that region may be represented by the modern Sihor in
Kathiawad." (History of Ceylon, 1973, p. 91, K. M. De Silva,
Hem Chandra Ray). See also: A Concise History of Ceylon: From the
Earliest Times to the Arrival of the Portuguese in 1505, edition
1961, p. 25, Cyril Wace Nicholas, Senarat Paranavitana;Gujarat
State Gazetteers‎, 1969, p 49, Gujarat (India) - Gujarat
(India).

Epigraphica Indica, XVII, p. 110

A stream of Aryan speakers started from Sinhapura (Lata)--
'Sihore' and Soparaka in west coast. These Sinhalas or people of
'lion clan' probably brought Aryan language into the island
(The Cambridge History of India India, Vol I, Ancient
India, 1968, p. 549, E. J. Rapson).